A Mountain Odyssey
by sammygirl1963
Summary: WeeChester Story. What happens when John takes his two very young sons on a hunt and is attacked and severely hurt by a wendigo? Hurt John/Scared Dean and Sammy. Dean is six and Sammy is two in this story.
1. Chapter 1

**A Mountain Odyssey**

**Disclaimer: **Kripke and the CW own the Winchesters. I am just playing in their sandbox. I am not making a profit from this story.

**Author's Note: **Dean is six and Sammy has just turned two in this story.

Thanks to **1PAGAN3 **for her help with a scene in this first chapter!

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

John was beyond stressed. Here he was in the Appalachian Mountains, the Pocono Mountains of North Eastern Pennsylvania to be exact in the middle of nowhere with two small children to look after. He was on a hunt for a wendigo that was attacking the young couples who came to the mountainess area to take advantage of the wide range of outdoor activities that were available while on their honeymoon. Ten people had disappeared over the last three years and all clues pointed to a wendigo being in the area.

John had had to bring Sammy and Dean on the hunt with him because there was nobody available to baby sit them. Pastor Jim was on a religious sabbatical and Bobby was involved in a hunt of his own. Being new to the hunt, he just didn't trust too many people with his kids, preferring to keep them by his side. Dean had just started talking recently after months of silence and Sammy was still in diapers having just turned two.

John carried Sammy on his hip as Dean followed beside him as they hiked their way through the woods after having parked the Impala a few miles back with John carrying the necessary supplies for the hunt on his back in a huge backpack. He had a small pup tent that all three of them could sleep in as well as the weapons he would need for the hunt. He also had a pan, a coffee pot, and utensils for cooking over an open fire as well as diapers and food for Sammy. He only brought a few cans of food for him and Dean figuring that they could eat fish or whatever small game he could kill while hunting for the wendigo.

Finally arriving at a place beside a lake surrounded by a rock outcropping, John handed a sleeping Sammy over to Dean while he set up camp. At least here, they couldn't be attacked from the back or the sides since he would set up camp in amongst the rocks. Dean sat down as he held his baby brother against his chest, happy for the chance to finally sit down and relax.

John quickly set up the tent with their sleeping bags inside before he gathered some rocks and wood to build a fire with. He cleared a small area of any leaves and debris before arranging the rocks in a wide circle. He then put in the kindling that he had gathered and used his lighter to set them ablaze. Pulling out the pan and a can of beans from the backpack, he quickly opened the can and poured the beans into the pan and placed it on the open fire.

Once he had the beans heating, John pulled out a small jar of chunky chicken and mixed vegetables for Sammy to eat. John knew that Sammy was getting too old for baby food, but it would give his baby the nourishment he needed while out in the woods. He opened the jar and handed it along with a small plastic spoon over to Dean and said "Dean, I want you to feed this to Sammy while I finish preparing our meal"

Dean took the food and sat his baby brother in the crook of his leg and "flew" some of the food into his mouth while making an airplane sound. "Eat up Sammy" he said as he "flew" in another spoonful making sure not to put too much on the spoon so his baby brother wouldn't choke on the food. After Sammy had eaten half of the jar, Dean said "Dad, I think Sammy needs some juice to rinse it down with" as Sammy turned his head away from the next spoonful.

John reached into his bag and pulled out some apple juice and poured it into Sammy's sippy cup. He handed it over to Dean as he said "Make sure he doesn't try to drink it too fast."

Dean handed the sippy cup to Sammy and watched as his brother held it between his chubby little hands. He laughed as the juice dribbled out of Sammy's mouth and down his chin. "You're supposed to drink it silly, not wear it" Dean said as he used his tee shirt to wipe Sammy's chin.

Once the beans were heated enough to eat, John spooned out a plate full and then reached over and took Sammy from Dean's lap to finish feeding him so that his oldest child could eat. John spooned some food out of the jar and fed it to Sammy who promptly spit the food back out. "No Sammy!" John said with a raised voice as he wiped the mess off of his own face and Sammy's mouth and shirt.

He prepared to get another spoonful when he looked at Sammy's face to see tears glistening in his eyes. "Please don't cry baby" he said as he put the spoon back into the jar. He felt bad for raising his voice and almost making his youngest son cry.

"Dee do it" Sammy whined wanting his big brother to feed him since it was more fun.

"Dean's eating his own food Sammy" John said as he held out a spoonful of food once again which Sammy promptly refused. Big tears started rolling down Sammy's cheek as John ran his hand through his hair.

"Come on kiddo, you have to eat" John said as he was getting exasperated with his youngest child.

"It's okay dad, I got him" Dean said as he finished the last of his beans. John sighed as he handed his baby over to Dean. He didn't know how Dean could have so much patience with Sammy when he could be so stubborn sometimes.

While Dean finished feeding Sammy, John finished off the beans and walked over to the lake where he washed out the plates and the pot. He didn't want any animals wandering into camp looking for food left out in the open. He then carried some water over and put it into the small tin coffee pot and heated it up. He needed a cup of caffeine before setting up some protective sigils and a ring of salt around the camp.

After Sammy finished his food, John recapped the jar and put it into his backpack. He rinsed off the spoon and put it away with the other dishes while Dean took his baby brother inside the tent to change his diaper since he had not yet been potty trained with all the moving they had done lately. Dean was working on the training when he could making sure to take his brother with him to the bathroom to try and help the process along, but Sammy hadn't accomplished the feat yet. After changing his diaper, Dean dressed his baby brother in a warm sleeper to make sure he didn't get too cold overnight.

Dean climbed into his sleeping bag and lay Sammy right beside him, pulling him in close to his side. "Go to sleep Sammy" he said as he watched his baby brother's eyes drooping shut before nodding off himself.

By the time John had drawn some protective sigils into the rock outcropping and outlined their campsite with salt, both of the boys had faded off to sleep. John smiled as he saw the way that Dean had his arm curled protectively around Sammy who was contentedly sucking his thumb in his sleep. John bent down and kissed both of his boys on the forehead before reaching into his duffle and pulling out a flare gun.

He crawled into his own sleeping bag which he had set up near the tent wall. He put the flare gun and his rifle between his side and the tent making sure to put the safety on. He didn't want to chance either of his boys being able to reach them without him knowing. He drifted off to sleep knowing his boys were protected as well as they could be while camping in the woods.

John was pulled from his sleep in the middle of the night by the sounds of something rustling outside the tent. He grabbed his shotgun and the flare gun before quietly pulling down the zipper and exiting the tent. He scanned the surrounding area with a flashlight as he stood ready to face whatever was out there. Hearing a sound to his right, he pulled up his gun and aimed, finger tensing on the trigger. He breathed out in relief as he saw a small doe run off into the woods. He decided to recheck the salt line to make sure the doe's hooves hadn't accidentally broken it.

After making sure everything was still in place, he reentered the tent and checked on his boys once again. Finding that Sammy had a wet diaper, John gently removed Dean's arm from his brother's side before rolling Sammy over onto his back. _"That's what I get for giving him apple juice just before bedtime" _he thought as he reached in to his backpack to get a diaper.

Dean was pulled from his sleep as he felt Sammy being moved away from his side. He opened gritty eyes to see his father kneeling beside him and Sammy. "What's wrong dad?" he asked through a big yawn.

"Nothing's wrong sport, I'm just changing Sammy's diaper" John replied as he winked at his oldest child. "Go back to sleep, I've got this one."

John finished changing his baby boy's diaper and situated his sleeper without waking him up and then tucked him back into Dean's side and watched as his oldest immediately wrapped a protective arm around his baby brother once again. He pulled the top of the sleeping bag over both boys making sure they were warm enough before climbing back into his own sleeping bag. It didn't take him long to fall asleep once again.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

Meanwhile, deep within a cave not too far from the Winchesters were camping, a skeleton thin creature awakened from slumber. It was approximately seven and a half feet tall with long gangly arms, the ends of which held claws instead of fingers. Its' face was gruesome looking since it was missing the nose and part of it's right ear. It also had teeth that were inhumanly long and looked around with glowing eyes. The creature also looked severely emaciated with its bony ribs poking through its unsightly putrid skin

The creature had once been a proud warrior who decided to trade his soul in an attempt to gain power. It was forced from it's tribe and driven deep into the wilderness where it slowly lost it's mind and all semblance of humanity through dark magic as it slowly resorted to cannibalism in the need to feed itself.

The creature raised it's head and sniffed the air where it could sense the smell of fresh meat in the distance. It relished the thought of being able to eat soon once again as it prepared it's lair for the dinner it would soon catch. It would have to stalk it's prey and learn it's habits before attempting to move in for the kill.

**TBC **I know there wasn't much action this chapter, but I needed to set the scene before John faces the Wendigo. I hope you enjoyed this opening chapter.


	2. Chapter 2

**A Mountain Odyssey Ch. 2**

**Disclaimer: **Kripke and the CW own the Winchesters. I am just playing in their sandbox. I am not making a profit from this story.

**Author's Note: **Dean is six and Sammy has just turned two in this story.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

John woke up early the next morning to the feeling of slobbery wet kisses being planted on his cheek. He opened his eyes to see that Sammy had crawled away from a still sleeping Dean and was intently staring him in the eyes. He smiled as he looked at his baby, his curly hair all disheveled from sleep. "Hey there tiger" John said as he sat up and reached out to pick up his baby boy.

Sammy curled into his daddy's chest as John held him close, with his chubby little hands clenching tightly to John's shirt. "I wuvs you daddy" Sammy said as he looked up into his father's face.

John's heart soared at hearing those four simple words that his baby had said. He knew he hadn't been the best father in the world lately as he struggled to assimilate into this new life of hunting he was thrust into after Mary had been killed. He worried about the way the hunting life would affect his boys, but God knows he couldn't bear to be without them.

"I love you too tiger" John said as he quickly dressed and hoisted his baby onto his hip before grabbing the backpack and carrying him outside the tent so that they wouldn't wake Dean. John took off his shirt and lay it on the ground before laying Sammy on top of it. He then changed his baby's diaper quickly as Sammy started sucking vigorously on his thumb.

Knowing that his baby was most likely hungry, John pulled out some oatmeal cereal and arranged Sammy so that he was sitting up snugly on one leg while being supported by John's left arm. Opening the jar, John dipped the spoon into the cereal hoping that Sammy would be content with him feeding him this time instead of Dean.

Sammy opened his mouth and eagerly accepted the food that John was feeding him. He looked up into his daddy's face and smiled with his eyes twinkling as John gave him another spoonful. After Sammy finished the cereal, John pulled out a bottle of grape juice and poured some into Sammy's sippy cup for the child to drink.

He once again hoisted Sammy onto his hip and carried him down to the lake filling a small coffee pot with water since he desperately wanted a cup of coffee. As he walked back up to the tent, he saw Dean just climbing out as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"Good Morning Sport" John said as he put Sammy down so that he could restart a fire to make the coffee.

""Morning" Dean said as he yawned and set down on a small nearby stump while watching Sammy as he toddled around he camp area while carrying his cup.

"You hungry?" John asked as he pulled some beef jerky from his backpack and handed it to his son.

"Yeah, thanks dad" Dean said as he accepted the food that his dad was offering. He bit into the jerky as he saw Sammy staring intently at something. He walked over to see what had captured his little brother's attention and screamed out "No Sammy" in horror as he watched Sammy bending down and reaching out to touch the object.

Hearing the terror in his son's voice, John jumped up immediately and raced over to the area just as Dean snatched up his baby brother and stood transfixed, looking at the rattlesnake that Sammy had nearly touched. Sensing that the rattlesnake was just about to strike, John pulled the hunting knife he always kept tucked into the waistband of his jeans and threw it with deadly accuracy killing the snake on contact as the shapr knife spilt it's neck wide open.

"Is he okay, did he get bit?" John asked anxiously as he picked up both of his boys and carried them away from the dead snake. He held a screaming Sammy close and comforted the child as he waited for Dean's answer.

"I-I don't think s-so" said Dean with an obvious tremor to his voice as his dad checked Sammy over for signs of a bite while he soothed Sammy at the same time. Finding none, John breathed a sigh of relief as he put Sammy into Dean's arms and ordered him to watch Sammy so he could dispose of the snake. As he returned, John scanned the ground surrounding the camp for any more signs of danger before getting the salt and relining the area where the snake had slithered across. He then pulled his boys near and hugged them to his body, thankful that things hadn't turned out much worse.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

As John sat embracing his boys, he was unaware of the creature that watched him from afar. The wendigo hid as it watched the hunter with his boys knowing that they were the man's greatest weakness. It saw the way he protected the young ones from the lowly snake that crawled upon the ground and it watched as the hunter enveloped the children within his arms and could smell the fear the father had for his children.

Ready to start stalking the small family, the wendigo moved just a little closer and emitted an eerie growl as it moved inhumanly fast through the forest. It stopped and watched as the hunter reacted quickly by securing it's children and raising a weapon as it scanned the woods looking for him.

The wendigo enjoyed playing with the hunter and putting it on alert. It would make its attack so much sweeter when it actually decided to lure the man from his protected area out into the open so it could sink it's claws into the hunters flesh as the young ones watched. Once it took care of the father, the children would be easy to capture and save for a future meal.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

As John sat hugging his children, he heard an unearthly growl and immediately stood and rushed over to the tent placing his children inside and taking a protective stance as he held the flare gun ready to fire. The only way he knew of to kill a wendigo was to set it's ice cold heart ablaze and burn the creature to death from the inside out.

John's attention was drawn to the leaves that blew in the breeze to his left and he thought he saw the shadow of something moving by at an incredibly fast speed. From the research he had done, John knew that wendigos were gifted with superhuman speed from the black magic that transformed them into the ugly creatures that they were today.

As John stood guard, he could hear the sounds of soft whimpering inside the tent and knew that Dean was doing his best to keep a sobbing Sammy quiet. John couldn't blame him for crying with all the excitement in his young life this morning. He trusted Dean to take care of his youngest while he kept guard until he was sure the creature wouldn't be approaching the camp anytime soon.

After thirty minutes with no further signs of the creature, John climbed into the tent to check on his boys. He immediate saw Dean rocking Sammy gently in his arms while his youngest son sucked on his thumb, nearly asleep.

"Sammy's okay now dad" Dean said when he saw his father looking intently at Sammy.

"Yeah, I can see that Sport. You did good" John said as he ruffled Dean's hair while he continued rocking his little brother. Once Sammy was fully asleep, John lifted him gently from Dean's arms and placed the toddler inside the nearest sleeping blanket as he covered him up.

"Dean, I want you to watch out for Sammy while I go down to the lake and catch us some fish for lunch" John said as he grabbed one of the collapsible fishing poles and a flare gun for protection. Before leaving the tent area, he lay another line of salt surrounding the tent as an added line of defense.

As John sat fishing, he also kept alert for any unusual sounds coming from the forest. He wasn't taking any chances of the wendigo approaching the campsite and catching him unaware. After about forty five minutes, John had caught five fish and knew that it would be more than enough for him and Dean. He also planned to introduce Sammy to his first taste of fish to see if his baby would eat it.

Returning to the campsite and adding some kindling to the slowly dying fire, John pulled out the pan and added a little cooking oil. He then cleaned and gutted the fish, filleted them for frying and placed them in the pan. As he cooked the fish, he saw Dean and Sammy climbing out of the tent.

"Sammy's awake daddy" Dean said as they walked over to their father.

"Did you have a good nap tiger?" John asked as Sammy reached out his arms to be picked up with John obliging him.

Sammy nodded his head as he snuggled into his father's embrace. He looked over into the pan to see something cooking and said "What dat daddy?"

John smiled at his baby's inquisitive nature. "That's our lunch tiger. Daddy caught some fish while you were napping and now I'm cooking it for us to eat."

"Otay Daddy" Sammy said as he put his two chubby hands to his father's cheek and squeezed them together forcing his daddy to make "fish lips" at him. He giggled as his daddy leaned in to kiss his tiny cheek.

Seeing that the fish were finished cooking, John handed Sammy over to Dean as he carefully lifted the hot pan from the fire, making sure that it would be out of Sammy's reach. He placed a couple of pieces on a plate for Dean and then took the other three himself.

John took one of the pieces on his plate and carefully tore it into tiny pieces to cool off for Sammy. Once he felt that they were cool enough, he gave Sammy a piece to try.

"Here tiger, try a bite of this fish" he said as held a small piece out for Sammy to take. He watched as Sammy stuck it in his mouth and chewed on it. He smiled as Sammy reached his hand out for another piece. "That's my boy" he said as he handed his baby another piece.

After they had finished their lunch, John dug a hole to place the bones in to keep away scavenging animals and took the pan and the plates down to the lake to wash them. He had just finished washing up the dishes and gathered them into his arms when he suddenly saw a blur coming towards him. By the time that he could drop the dishes and whip out the flare gun, he felt the white hot pain of claws digging deep into his side and the sounds of his boys screaming in panic.

As he saw blackness encroaching on his vision, John pulled the flare gun and fired it into the wendigo's body. He knew he had not made a killing shot as he heard the creature emitting an unearthly shriek as it lumbered away into the woods to lick it's wounds. He stumbled back to the campsite knowing he had to get within the safety of the salt ring and to his boys. As he crossed the salt line, his legs gave out and he fell to his knees as Dean rushed over to him carrying Sammy. "Daddy" was the last thing he heard as he passed out to the sight of large tears trailing down both of his boys faces and the sounds of Sammy screaming.

**TBC **


	3. Chapter 3

**A Mountain Odyssey Ch. 3**

**Disclaimer: **Kripke and the CW own the Winchesters. I am just playing in their sandbox. I am not making a profit from this story.

**Author's Note: **Okay, I'm not totally sure about this one. Let me know what you think.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

**Previously: **_As John crossed the salt line, his legs gave out and he fell to his knees as Dean rushed over to him carrying Sammy. "Daddy" was the last thing he heard as he passed out to the sight of large tears trailing down both of his boys faces and the sounds of Sammy screaming._

As Dean approached their injured father with a screaming Sammy in his arms, he was scared of what he was going to find. He knew that his dad was hurt really bad because he could see all the blood that was covering his shirt when he fell to the ground. He knew that he needed to try and wake his father up so he cradled a still screaming Sammy to his chest as he reached over to push on his dad's shoulder.

"Wake up daddy" Dean said as he watched his father's eyes intently for any signs of movement. When he didn't see any signs of movement he decided to try again.

"Daddy, I need you to wake up now so you can tell me what I'm supposed to do. You're bleeding and I don't know how to stop it." Dean pleaded to no avail.

Huge tears started falling from Dean's face as he saw the large crimson stain that was spreading on his father's shirt. He knew his dad was bleeding too much and he wondered if his dad would die.

"Daddy, you need to wake up now so Sammy won't be scared" Dean said as he cuddled his baby brother closer to his chest. Sammy was crying so hard now that his gut wrenching sobs were making his whole body shake.

Not knowing what else to do, Dean walked back into the tent and got one of the sleeping bags. He knew that his daddy was probably cold since he was lying on the ground. He put Sammy down so he could open the sleeping bag to cover their father. He watched as Sammy immediately crawled up onto their father's chest and lay his head down, putting his thumb into his mouth.

Knowing that his baby brother was seeking comfort the only way he knew how, he left Sammy there and covered both him and his father as he sat down to watch over them.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

Joshua was quietly making his way through the woods of the Pocono Mountains on the trail of a creature that was attacking hikers. He had decided to take on the hunt when he had overheard some people in a diner gossiping about an inhumanly large creature terrorizing the woods. He had found some marking on trees while searching the woods last night and established that the creature was most likely a wendigo.

As he was actively searching for the creatures lair, he heard a far off sound that he could swear were the cries of a baby. "What the hell?" he thought as he listened intently for the sound again. It wasn't long before he heard the sound again, only this time it was louder.

"Holy Shit! What in the hell is somebody doing out in these wood with a baby" he wondered as he immediately changed direction to head towards the area where the cries were coming from afraid of what he might find.

He picked up his pace hoping to get to the baby before anything could happen to it. He would never forgive himself if an innocent child was lost because he didn't get there in time. As he jogged, he watched for signs of the wendigo knowing that he would be of no use if he allowed himself to be injured or killed.

Joshua soon became worried as he heard the sounds of the crying tapering off. "Oh God, please let that baby be alright" he prayed as he caught the faint smell of smoke on the breeze.

Joshua felt immediate relief as he spotted the signs of a camp up ahead. As he approached though, his heart dropped at the sight of young child sitting by a body on the ground that was covered by a sleeping bag. Knowing that he needed to warn the child of his approach to keep from scaring him, Joshua called out "Hello in the camp"

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

Dean sat watching as Sammy slowly drifted off to sleep while laying on their father's chest. He had no doubt the kid was exhausted from all the crying that he had done and he wished he too could just crawl into his father's embrace and everything would be alright.

Dean was beginning to tremble but refused to leave his daddy's side. He had to be there just in case his daddy woke up. He wished that Pastor Jim or Bobby was around because they could make everything alright.

"Please daddy, I need you, please don't leave me" Dean sobbed as he lowered his head and allowed the tears to flow freely. All of the sudden, he heard a voice calling out "Hello in the camp" He looked up to see a man not quite as tall as his father approaching the camp. The man had on an army jacket and muscles like his dad's, maybe even bigger.

"Who, who are you?" Dean asked as the man came closer.

"Hi there kiddo, my name is Joshua" the man said as he bent down to get on Dean's level. "Looks like your daddy's been hurt" he said as he scanned the unconscious man laying on the ground with the sleeping baby lying on his chest.

"I'm not 'posed to talk to strangers" Dean said as he eyed the man warily.

"That's a good rule to follow most of the time" Joshua said as he tried to ease Dean's fears. "You're daddy taught you right." Seeing the faint smile that almost crossed Dean's face, he went on to say, "but right now, you're daddy's hurt pretty bad and he needs help. If it's okay with you, I'd like to help you're daddy son."

Dean eyed the stranger for a minute as he thought about what the man had said. He knew his daddy needed help and there was nobody else around so maybe it would be alright this time. Dean nodded his permission and then watched as Joshua reached out to move the sleeping bag.

"W-wait" Dean suddenly yelled and watched as Joshua froze in his movements. Dean pulled the sleeping bag down enough to uncover his little brother and picked him up, cuddling him close before nodding to Joshua once again.

Joshua smiled at seeing how protective the older boy was of his little brother. _"That kid is going to be one hell of a protector one day" _he thought as he reached out to pull the sleeping bag away from the boys dad.

He winced in sympathy when he saw the dark stain that encompassed most of the man's side. Knowing that he needed to get the bleeding stopped, he said "Listen kid, I am going to have to stop this bleeding so I'm going to open my backpack and take out a pressure bandage and hold it to your dad's side."

Dean watched as Joshua opened his pack and brought out a big first aid kit, even bigger than the one their father had. He watched as Joshua tore open his dad's shirt and then pulled a big funny looking bandage out of his kit. He then watched as Joshua put the bandage on his daddy's side and applied pressure making his daddy moan in discomfort.

"No, stop. You're hurting him" Dean said when he saw the man holding the bandage down.

"I'm sorry squirt, but I need to apply pressure to stop the bleeding" Joshua explained as he continued applying pressure to the wound.

As Joshua applied the pressure, he was startled as he saw a salt line of protection surrounding the camp area. He wondered if this was the family that he had heard about from Bobby. He had never had a chance to meet John Winchester and his boys yet. Bobby had told him how fiercely protective Winchester was of his sons and he couldn't blame the man after learning about how his wife had been killed.

"Hey kid, what's your name?" Joshua asked as he lifted the pressure bandage to take a look. He was happy to see that the bleeding had slowed down to a trickle.

"I'm Dean and this is Sammy" he said as he nodded at his little brother.

"Nice to meet you Dean" Joshua said as he smiled at the youngster. "I think we might know some of the same people" he stated hoping to put the boy more at ease.

Dean looked at him in confusion wondering how they could know the same people but not each other. "I don't think so mister" he said wondering what the man was up to.

"Tell me Dean, do you know a couple of men named Bobby Singer and Pastor Jim Murphy?" Joshua asked as he watched the surprised look that crossed Dean's face before replacing the pressure bandage on John's side.

"How, how do you know them?" Dean asked as his mouth dropped open in shock.

"They're friends of mine" Joshua answered "I hope we can be friends too" he said as he smiled once again at Dean before focusing on taking care of John.

Knowing that he needed to clean out the wound, Joshua took out his flask and poured some holy water into the gouges on John's side. He watched as the water steamed from the wounds and heard John moan again in pain even in unconsciousness. After her rinsed the wound a few times, he then used peroxide to sterilize the area around the wound.

Not wanting Dean to see what he was going to do next, Joshua said "Dean, I want you to take your little brother inside the tent and watch him. I'm going to stitch up these wounds in your daddy's side and it would scare Sammy if he wakes up."

Knowing that Joshua was friends with Bobby and Pastor Jim, Dean decided it would be safe to leave his daddy's side for just a little while. He stood up and started walking towards the tent, but before he went inside he asked "Promise you'll come get us if daddy wakes up?"

"Yeah squirt, I'll let you know as soon as your daddy wakes up" Joshua replied as he pulled the supplies that he would need to stitch John up from the first aid kit.

Joshua quickly stitched the wounds and then ran his hands through his hair. "Man, don't you die on me and leave me to take to take care of two grieving kids" he said praying that John would have the strength to hold on for his kids.

**TBC Will Joshua be able to take care of two young children as he tries to save their father's life?**


	4. Chapter 4

**A Mountain Odyssey Ch. 4**

**Disclaimer: **Kripke and the CW own the Winchesters. I am just playing in their sandbox. I am not making a profit from this story.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

**Previously: **_Joshua quickly stitched the wounds and then ran his hands through his hair. "Man, don't you die on me and leave me to take to take care of two grieving kids" he said praying that John would have the strength to hold on for his kids._

Knowing that John didn't need to be out in the cool afternoon air in his condition, Joshua hoisted him up with a grunt. "Damn, you're heavier than you look" he said as he carried John over to the tent that the boys were now occupying.

As he approached the tent, he called out "Hey squirt, open the tent flap for me." He watched as Dean opened the door flap as he bent down to carry John through the opening. He gently lay him down next to the sleeping toddler.

Joshua was surprised to see the toddler instinctively curl into his daddy's warmth as he rolled into his side. He smiled as he watched his little chubby hand clasp onto his father's shirt while the thumb of his other hand was being vigorously sucked upon before turning his attention to Dean.

"You doing alright kiddo?" Joshua asked as he really looked at Dean closely for the first time. He could see the slight tremors coursing through the child's body and wondered if he was suffering from a mild form of shock. Heaven knows the kid had that the right to after what he had been forced to witness.

"Yes sir, M'fine" Dean answered automatically in the Winchester way. He figured Joshua didn't need to know how truly terrified he was, especially at the thought of the creature coming back and hurting somebody else.

"Yeah, sure you are kid" Joshua replied as he smiled at Dean. "You know, it's alright to be scared after what you witnessed. Hell, I'm scared myself just thinking about that thing out there"

"You are?" questioned Dean with his mouth dropping open in surprise. "I thought grown ups weren't afraid of anything, I know my dad isn't."

"You'd be surprised what kinds of things scare us adults" Joshua replied to Dean as he reached out to ruffle the kids hair before going outside to clean up the mess from taking care of John's wounds.

While he was outside, Joshua scanned the woods for any signs of the wendigo. He couldn't allow the creature to sneak up on him since he was the only one standing between it and the boys now. He had to stay alert and healthy until John was well enough to take care of his own children once again.

Just as he had finished cleaning up the bloody gauze bandages, Joshua heard Dean calling for him.

"Yeah quirt, what is it?" he asked as he looked over to see Dean coming out of the tent.

"I think my dad is waking up" Dean said in answer to Joshua's question. Joshua followed Dean back inside to see that John was restlessly tossing his head about.

"Hey man, you're gonna be okay" Joshua said as he doused a handkerchief with holy water to wipe the beading sweat off of John's forehead. He could see the lines of pain that were etched into the hunter's forehead and wondered just how much pain the man was in.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

John felt groggy as he tried to overcome the blackness that had overtaken him. He knew he needed to fight his way back to the boys but he was so freaking tired and weak. _"What the hell happened to me_" he thought. He could feel a deep pain in his side and he clung to that pain to try and wake himself up. He started moaning as he tossed his head back and forth trying to clear the cobwebs that were invading his senses.

The pain became more persistent and he felt beads of perspiration forming on his face and body. He heard a voice he didn't recognize and soon felt the soothing coolness of something wiping across his forehead. He tried to open his eyes, but they felt as if they had been sealed shut with super glue. He really needed to check on his boys.

"Dean, Sammy" John gasped out in a slight whisper as his breathing started to speed up.

"The boys are fine, calm down, you need to relax" he heard that same voice say as he felt a hand resting on his chest. "I'm a hunter. My name is Joshua, I'm a friend of Pastor Jim and Bobby's, your boys are safe with me."

John succumbed to the blackness encroaching on his vision after hearing the names of people he trusted as he entered into a deep healing sleep.

Joshua smiled as he saw the lines of tension relaxing on John's face. He looked at Dean and said "S'good, your dad is entering a healing sleep now. He should sleep for a while"

Joshua had no sooner spoken when he saw the toddler staring intently at him with big hazel eyes. "Hey there munchkin" he said as he watched Sammy squirm in closer to his father.

"It's okay munchkin, I won't hurt you" he said as he smiled at the child trying not to scare him.

"His name ain't munchkin" Joshua heard Dean say using a matter of fact tone. "His name is Sammy, sometimes daddy calls him tiger" Dean said as he reached his arms out to invite Sammy into them.

Sammy looked at Joshua warily and then scooted quickly towards Dean on his little bottom until he was safe and secure in Dean's arms. "Who dat?" he asked as he looked at Dean with large expressive eyes.

"That's Joshua and he's a friend of Pastor Jim and Uncle Bobby Dean replied as he kissed Sammy on the forehead.

"He gots candy wike Unca Bobby? Sammy questioned knowing that Bobby usually had a lollipop or some other treat for him when they visited.

"I don't know, you'll have to ask him" Dean replied in answer to Sammy's question. He watched as Sammy thought about it for a minute before shaking his head no and burying his head into Dean's neck while wrapping his small arms tightly around him.

"It's alright Sammy, Joshua is really nice, he won't hurt ya" Dean said as he tried to pry his little brother loose.

Sammy lifted his head up and looked into Dean's eyes. "You pwomise?" he asked with a slight tremor to his voice.

"Cross my heart and pinky swear" Dean said as he laced his pinky with Sammy's. He had just taught Sammy to do that a few weeks ago and Sammy took it to heart.

Joshua watched the boys conversing with each other and hoped Dean would be able to convince the toddler that he was an okay guy. He didn't want Sammy to be afraid of him since they would most likely be spending a few days together. For once, he was glad that he usually carried sweets with him on a hunt since he never knew when he would be able to eat his next meal.

He watched as Sammy got down off of Dean's lap and slowly approached him as he stopped every few steps to look at Dean. Joshua's heart nearly melted when the toddler finally looked up at him with the sweetest puppy dog eyes he had ever seen and asked "You gots candy for Sammy?'

"I sure do tiger" Joshua answered as he pulled two lollipops from his pocket. "Here's one for you and one for your brother" Joshua said as he handed the treats over to Sammy.

"T'ank you" Sammy said as he grasped the treats with his chubby little hand and carried them over to Dean. Dean allowed Sammy to choose which color he wanted and then opened the cherry one for Sammy as he opened the grape for himself. He didn't really like the grape, but he wanted Sammy to have his favorite. Sammy plopped his treat into his mouth and then smiled at Joshua as he sucked on the lollipop.

Joshua smiled back as he watched the red colored drool dribbling out of the youngster's mouth and down his chin_. "One thing is for sure" _he thought with dismay, _"that kid already has me wrapped around his little finger"_

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

As afternoon turned into evening, Joshua rebuilt the fire that had slowly burned out as he took care of John while Dean changed his little brother's diaper. He knew the kids hadn't had anything to eat lately and were most likely getting hungry. He pulled a can of beef stew from his backpack, opened it quickly and poured it into the pot. He watched as it cooked not wanting it to get too hot for the boys.

He spooned some into a plate for each of the boys and some for himself. He then called the boys to come eat as their father slept on. He placed the food in front of the boys and sat to eat his own when he heard Dean say, "Sammy can't eat that. You didn't mash up the big chunks for him. He might choke."

Joshua felt like an ass. How could he have not thought about the possibility of Sammy choking on the big chunks of meat when the kid was so little.

"Damn, I didn't think about that" Joshua said as he watched Dean take Sammy's plate and patiently cut up the big chunks of food for him. When he was content that the food was safe enough, Dean gave Sammy the plate and watched as his little brother dug in. Both Joshua and Dean laughed as Sammy got more of the food on him than he did in him.

"Wow, you sure are making a mess there tiger" Joshua said as he watched Sammy give up using the spoon and instead use his hands to feed himself.

"He always makes a mess when he feeds himself" Dean said as if to explain things to Joshua. "Usually me or daddy will feed him when it's something he can make a big mess with."

"Now ya tell me" Joshua said as he threw up his hands. "Well, it's gonna take some water to get him cleaned up so I guess I better go down to the lake and get some."

Joshua had no sooner said the words than Sammy threw down his plate and started screaming at the top of his lungs.

**TBC**


	5. Chapter 5

**A Mountain Odyssey Ch. 5**

**Disclaimer: **Kripke and the CW own the Winchesters. I am just playing in their sandbox. I am not making a profit from this story.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

**Previously: **_"He always makes a mess when he feeds himself" Dean explained to Joshua who then said, "Well, it's gonna take some water to get him cleaned up so I guess I better go down to the lake and get some." Joshua had no sooner said the words than Sammy threw down his plate and started screaming at the top of his lungs._

"What the hell" thought Joshua as he immediately stood up and took a protective stance as he started scanning around the campsite area as Dean scrambled to pick up his little brother.

Dean held Sammy close to his chest as he whispered soothing words into his baby brother's ear. "Shh, I gotcha, shhh, don't cry." Knowing that he needed to explain the sudden outburst to Joshua, Dean looked at the hunter with tears filling his eyes and said "That's where our dad was attacked."

"_Damn it, can't you do anything right" _Joshua thought to himself feeling horrible since he had unintentionally scared the toddler.

Joshua was just about to apologize when he heard a yelp coming from inside the tent. He rushed in to see John on his hands and knees with sweat pouring off of him profusely.

What the hell are you trying to do John?" Joshua asked as he tried to guide the injured hunter into a lying down position once again.

"Gotta g-get to S-Sammy" John panted out as he tried to push Joshua away. John had been awakened by the sounds of Sammy's terrified screams and was desperately trying to get to his baby boy.

"Sammy's okay man, look" Joshua said as he pointed towards Dean who was carrying the still crying toddler into the tent.

"Wha' happened?" John questioned as he reached out to try and calm his baby boy by ruffling his hair.

"It was my fault" answered Joshua as he explained how he had inadvertently scared Sammy by mentioning going down to the lake for water.

Feeling weak, John sat down and scrubbed his hands over his face as he said "Let me hold him Dean." Dean gently put Sammy into his father's lap as John wrapped his arms around his trembling baby boy.

"It's alright tiger, daddy's gotcha" John said as he gently rocked Sammy. He could feel intense pain in his side but ignored it in his need to calm his youngest child.

Joshua watched as a grimace of pain crossed John's face as he soothed his youngest child who was now sniffling instead of crying. He was amazed at how fast the youngest had quieted down when placed into his father's arms. Joshua quickly pulled some pain medication out of his back pack and offered two to John who quickly dry swallowed them

As Joshua continued to watch John with Sammy, he noticed that John was quickly losing the battle to stay awake and helped the hunter to ease back into a laying position, and then Joshua positioned Sammy to lay in the crook of his father's arm with John's shoulder supporting his head.

Joshua covered up both father and son as John smiled up at him and thanked him for his help. John then softly crooned a tune to Sammy who soon fell asleep, feeling safe once again allowing John to drift off in a drug induced slumber himself.

Dean watched as he daddy drifted off to sleep with Sammy lying near his side. He then said goodnight to Joshua as he crawled into his own sleeping bag to get some much needed sleep himself since he was totally exhausted.

Joshua used the time to quickly run down to the lake to gather the water he would need to clean up. After washing out the dishes, he dipped a cloth into the water, he quietly slipped back inside the tent to gently wash the stickiness from Sammy's face and hands while the child slept. After he doused the fire, Joshua pulled out his own sleeping bag and lay near the tent opening so he would be close by if he was needed during the night. He hadn't been asleep long when he heard the very soft sounds of whimpering coming from the tent. He went inside to find Sammy sitting up and rubbing his eyes as he softly cried.

"What's wrong tiger?" he whispered not wanting to wake the others who were still asleep. Sammy just looked at him as he squirmed around alerting Joshua to what the problem was since he caught the faint whiff coming from Sammy's diaper.

"Oh crap" he said realizing that the kid needed to be changed before his little bottom became chafed. He was tempted to wake Dean, but then chose to change the diaper himself remembering the look of exhaustion on Dean's face before he had fallen asleep_. _He just hoped he would be up to it since he'd never had the experience of changing a diaper before.

"_Jeez, how do I get myself into these messes" _he wondered as he decided to leap right into mission diaper change. Joshua wrinkled his nose in disgust knowing how powerful the odor was going to be once the kid's diaper was opened.

He quickly rooted through John's backpack until he found a clean diaper and then grabbed the still wet cloth he had used to clean Sammy up with earlier. He quickly lay Sammy down as he gulped before reaching down and unfastening the kids diaper.

"Whew" he said as he smelled the nasty aroma wafting up to meet his nose as he quickly recovered Sammy with the diaper. How was he supposed to change the kid with all that nasty brown stuff leaking out the sides of his diaper.

He shuddered as he leaned in and quickly cleaned Sammy's behind using the wet cloth and fastened him into a clean diaper once again even if it did look a little lopsided. He positioned Sammy into the same spot he was before and watched as the toddler quickly nodded off to sleep once again.

Picking the stinky, diaper up by his fingertips and holding it way out from his body, Joshua quickly carried it outside and dug a deep hole to bury it in. He definitely didn't want to smell that thing for the rest of the night. He thought about doing a salt and burn because something that smelled that bad surely had to be possessed. Joshua whispered a quick Christo before he dropped the diaper in the hole and buried it as deep and as quickly as possible.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

Joshua woke up early the next morning to find the three Winchesters still asleep. He decided to walk down to the lake to get some water for coffee before the youngest woke up. He didn't need another scene like the one last night.

Upon returning to the campsite, he heard some moaning coming from inside the tent. He opened the flap and walked in to see the boys dad rolling his head from side to side, He reached out and placed his palm against John's forehead and was dismayed to find that he had started running a slight fever sometime during the night.

"Damn it, a fever is the last thing he needs to deal with" Joshua muttered as he went out to get a pan of water. He pulled out a clean handkerchief from his pocket and dipped it into the cold water he had procured from the lakes. Wringing out the excess water, he placed the cloth on John's forehead and smiled when he saw the injured hunter open his eyes to look at him.

"You're gonna be okay John" he said as he reached over Sammy to check the wound in John's side. The area was still very tender and swollen, but he didn't think the skin was showing any signs of infection. He hope the fever was a result of the loss of blood and being left in out in the open air wounded until Joshua had gotten to him.

Joshua watched as John started fidgeting and tried to push himself up into a sitting position. "Whoa there, you need to lay down and relax, give that wound some time to heal" Joshua stated as he reached out to gently push John back down.

"No, I uh…I need to um…." John stuttered as he tried to push up once again.

"OH" Joshua said suddenly understanding what John was trying to get across to him. "Wait just a second" Joshua said as he gently lifted Sammy to lay the sleeping child beside Dean.

Joshua helped John to a standing position being careful not to move to fast. He slowly helped John outside and then stopped as John pointed to where he needed to go. When Joshua finally got John to the predetermined spot. He aked "You got it from here?" hoping that John would be able to handle the private matter by himself.

"Yeah, I'm good" John gasped as he leaned against a tree while Joshua turned his back and walked a few feet away to give him some privacy. Upon taking care of business, John called out to Joshua who then helped him back over to the tent area where John chose to sit outside.

"Is that coffee you're making" John asked as he glanced over towards the pot on the fire while holding a hand to his injured side.

"Yeah, should be ready about now" Joshua said as he poured John a steaming cup and handed it to him before pouring himself a cup.

John cradled his cup in his hand as he watched the hunter sitting opposite of him, the man who had saved his life and most likely the lives of his boys. "I don't know how I'll ever be able to repay you for what you've done for me and my boys" John said sincerely wanting Joshua to know how much he appreciated the help.

"No repayment needed man" Joshua replied. "It's payment enough just getting to know those boys of yours, speaking of which…" John looked up to see Dean walking out of the tent holding Sammy in his arms.

"Daddy" Sammy shouted as he struggled to get down out of Dean's arms. Dean quickly released his brother as Sammy accidentally kicked him in hard in the leg. Sammy launched himself at his father but was quickly caught around the waist as Joshua swooped him up into his arms.

"Slow down there tiger" Joshua said as he lifted Sammy into the air. "You're daddy's still hurt and you have to be careful with him" Joshua carefully placed Sammy into his daddy's arms with Sammy quickly wrapping his arms around his daddy's neck.

"Hey baby" John said as he returned his youngest son's hug. "I missed you too, both of you" he said as he looked up to smile at Dean and reached a hand out for him drawing Dean into a hug also.

"Daaaaad, enough with the chick flick moment" Dean said as he returned his father's hug. Dean was secretly glad to be held within his father's embrace, but he didn't want to look weak and needy in front of Joshua.

"Well, who's up for breakfast?" Joshua asked as he pulled a container of oatmeal from his backpack. Sure, it wasn't the best tasting breakfast food in the world, but it would at least satisfy the hunger until lunch. Just as he poured some water into a pot to heat, the hunters heard an eerie growling sound coming from the woods off to the right.

Joshua immediately threw down the pot and pulled a flare gun from his weapons bag as he heard the high pitched sound of Sammy wailing in terror once again. He had no doubts this time though as to what had scared the child so badly as he caught a slight glimpse of the wendigo moving rapidly through the woods.

**TBC**


	6. Chapter 6

**A Mountain Odyssey Ch. 6**

**Disclaimer: **Kripke and the CW own the Winchesters. I am just playing in their sandbox. I am not making a profit from this story.

**Author's Note: **This chapter didn't flow as easily as the others, so I'm not totally sure about it--hope you enjoy it!

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

**Previously: **_Joshua immediately threw down the pot and pulled a flare gun from his weapons bag as he heard the high pitched sound of Sammy wailing in terror once again. He had no doubts this time though as to what had scared the child so badly as he caught a slight glimpse of the wendigo moving rapidly through the woods._

John struggled to calm a terrified Sammy as the child screamed and shook within his embrace while the wendigo continued it's unearthly howling. He pulled Sammy close to his chest as Sammy wailed "No, no get my daddy. Go 'way, no get my daddy" over and over again.

"Shhh, s'okay Sammy, Joshua won't let it get me. Calm down baby, shh, it's alright" John said as he rocked Sammy within his arms. Sammy was shaking so hard that John was worried he could be going into shock over the creature's return.

"Dean, get me my jacket" John said to his eldest child who was trying to keep a lookout for the creature as he stood protectively in front of his dad and Sammy. Dean rushed inside and grabbed his dad's leather jacket from his duffle bag and quickly carried it outside to his dad who promptly wrapped it around Sammy to keep the shivering child warm.

"Daddy's here baby, and I'm not going anywhere" John whispered into Sammy's ear as he started rubbing his baby's back while gently continuing to rock the child.

John looked up to see Joshua tracking the wendigo with the flare gun and watched as he took aim and fired. The flare made a loud popping sound as it exited the gun and started on its trajectory towards the creature only for the wendiog to dodge the flare at the last minute with its super human speed.

"Damn" Joshua cursed as he realized he had missed his target and watched the wendigo rushing away from the area. "I'll blow you ass away the next time you fugly son of a bitch, you can count on it"

Joshua then looked over towards John and his heart broke for little Sammy as he watched the toddler clinging to his father tightly while continuing to sob. He wished he had been able to kill the wendigo for the children's sake so they wouldn't have to worry about it attacking their dad anymore. It worried him to see Dean sitting by his father's legs so quietly. He knew Dean had to have been a little traumatized by the creature's return also.

Joshua walked up to Dean who was softly rubbing Sammy's leg in support. "How you doing squirt" he asked as he squeezed Dean's shoulder in a show of comfort"

"M'fine" Dean said as he rested his head against John's leg without looking up at Joshua. He didn't want Josh or his dad to see the tears that were silently streaming down his face. He wasn't scared for himself though, he was scared for Sammy. He had never seen Sammy cry so hard before.

"Sure you are kid" Joshua stated as he ruffled Dean's hair before walking away to gather some more kindling for the campfire to give the small family some time to themselves.

After what seemed like an eternity, Sammy had finally quieted down. Knowing that Sammy had to be exhausted, John attempted to lift the toddler off of his lap so that Dean could put him down for a nap but Sammy stubbornly held on to his shirt.

"Hey tiger, you need to let go of Daddy's shirt so Dean can take you inside the tent for your nap" John encouraged as Dean reached in to pick Sammy up.

"No, I stay wif you daddy" Sammy said as he buried his face into John's shirt. "I no wanna take nap."

"Sammy, it's okay, you need to do as you're told son and go with Dean." John stated with a little more conviction in his voice.

"Pwease Daddy" Sammy cried as he looked up into his father's eyes with huge tears spilling down his chubby little cheeks.

John immediately caved in to his youngest son's wishes as soon as he felt Sammy beginning to tremble. He assunmed that his baby still didn't feel safe yet and it worried him. Knowing that Sammy needed to get some rest, John stood with his youngest child in his arms and carried him inside the tent where he lay down with Sammy to rest until the both fell asleep.

SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN

While Sammy and his dad slept, Dean walked over to where Joshua sat cleaning one of his guns. He watched intently as Joshua took the gun apart and then cleaned the barrel thoroughly before putting it together once again.

"Why did you do that?" Dean questioned once Joshua tucked the gun into the back of his jeans.

"Well squirt, in the hunting profession, you have to make sure you're weapons are always in good working order so They don't jam on you when you need them most."

"You mean so they'll shoot when they're supposed to?" asked Dean truly interested in what Joshua was doing.

"That's right squirt, it could mean the difference in saving a life" Joshua said as he smiled at Dean.

"I'm gonna be a hunter some day just like my dad" Dean informed Joshua. "He's the bestest there is ya know."

Joshua couldn't help but smile at the pride that had shown on Dean's face when he made the statement. It was obvious the little boy thought the world of his father.

"Is that right? Well maybe he can teach me to be a better hunter when he's all better" Joshua said as he watched Dean's face light up at the prospect.

"Joshua?"

"Yeah squrit?"

"Will you teach me how to do that with a gun someday?" Dean asked wanting to learn all he could about hunting.

"Sure kiddo, as long as your daddy's says it's okay." Joshua replied making sure not to overstep John's authority with his oldest child. "But for now, what do you say we build a fire and put something on for lunch. Sammy and your daddy are going to be hungry when they wake up since we kind of skipped breakfast this morning."

Joshua showed Dean how to place the kindling in a way that the fire would burn longer and stay within it's boundaries making it more safe for campers. He figured while they were stuck out there in the woods, he could make the experience a learning opportunity for Dean.

Joshua thought about going down to the lake to catch some fish for dinner, but he didn't want to chance leaving Dean sitting outside the camp by himself. Instead, he pulled out a couple of cans of Campbell's chunky steak and potatoes from his duffle bag to cook over the open fire. He was glad that he had packed enough provisions to last him a couple of weeks. He knew it would only last a few days since he was feeding four now instead of one, but hopefully the hunt would be over by then.

When lunch was finally ready, Joshua sent Dean in to wake up his family while he filled some plates for everybody, this time making sure to cut up the meat and potatoes into small bites for Sammy.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

After everybody had finished lunch, Dean pulled out some hot wheels cars and placed them in the dirt while his dad and Joshua talked about the hunt. He was hoping to coax Sammy into joining him since Sammy had yet to leave their father's side after the wendigo had frightened him so badly this morning.

He used some sticks to build a ramp and jumped his cars over them while making zooming noises. As he played, he watched Sammy out of the corner of his eye. He could see that his little brother was intently watching him as he sucked on his thumb.

"I sure wish I had somebody to race against" Dean sighed as he pushed his car along in the dirt. He was pleased to see that Sammy had climbed down off of their dad's lap, at least it was a start.

John and Joshua sat amazed as they watched Dean tempting Sammy to join him in play. John could sense how badly Sammy wanted to play and was ecstatic to see him taking that first step by climbing off of his lap and taking a few steps toward Dean._ "Come on, you can do it" _he thought as he watched Sammy debating whether or not to go play with Dean. He was dismayed however to see Sammy deciding against playing and returning to his side.

Just as John was about to pick Sammy up, he heard Dean pretend to sniffle. "I guess nobody wants to play with me" Dean said as he sniffled again and wiped his nose on his shirt, pretending to cry.

"Don't cry De, Sammy will pway wif you" Sammy said as he walked over and plopped down beside Dean taking one of the cars into his chubby little hand much to John's amazement.

Dean hugged his baby brother and said "Thanks Sammy" as he picked up his own car and started zooming it around through the dirt with Sammy doing the same.

"_Damn kid, you're good" _thought Joshua as he watched Sammy playing with his big brother. _"You'll be able to con the best of them some day." _

John smiled and said _"That's my boy_" as he winked at Dean to let him know he had done good. He knew that Dean would keep Sammy occupied long enough for him and Joshua to come up with a plan for killing the wendigo.

**TBC**


	7. Chapter 7

**A Mountain Odyssey Ch. 7**

**Disclaimer: **Kripke and the CW own the Winchesters. I am just playing in their sandbox. I am not making a profit from this story.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

After John saw that the boys were thoroughly engrossed in playing with the cars, he turned to face Joshua. "We've got to find a way to kill the Wendigo before it can cause any more havoc. I don't know how much more Sammy can take from that thing."

"I hear you John and I totally agree. I hate to say it, but I think I'm going to have to track the wendigo to its lair and see if I can stop it there" Joshua said as he glanced over towards the boys.

"I agree with you Josh, but I'm worried about what it will do to the boys state of mind watching you walk away on your own knowing that thing is out there. Sammy's already terrified enough and Dean is afraid too, even if he isn't willing to admit it. He really cares for you Joshua and I would hate to see what it would do to him if something happened to you" John said as he thought aloud.

"Well if I wait until late tonight, after the boys have gone to bed, I can leave camp then and track the son of a bitch down to its lair. Hopefully I can destroy the thing and get back before the boys ever wake up" Joshua mentioned as a way of the boys not watching him leave.

"I just don't like the idea of you taking this thing on by yourself when I'm here and could help you. Maybe if we wait another day, then I'll be able to go with you" John said feeling guilty about the prospect of Joshua seeking out the creature by himself.

"No way man" Joshua discounted right away. "There is no way in freaking hell that I'll let you do that. We can't leave the boys by themselves. What if that thing back tracked on us and we didn't realize it until it was too late."

"You're right, there's no way I could leave my boys alone knowing that thing is out there. Damn it, if I hadn't allowed myself to be taken by surprise, I could have already killed the damn thing already" John stated disgusted with himself.

"Don't blame yourself man. Those creatures are superhuman in what they do. You were lucky that you weren't killed" Joshua said as he slapped John's knee in support.

John was just about to say something else when he heard Sammy calling out to him. "Daddy, come pway wif us" Sammy hollered as he looked up with pleading eyes. "We have a car for you and Joshua too."

John laughed aloud as he looked over at Joshua. "What do you say, you ready to get down and dirty with two little boys?"

"Don't you know it" Joshua grinned as he walked over and plopped down stomach first into the dirt beside Dean. John just shook his head and laughed as he followed suit and plopped down beside Sammy.

"Here daddy, you pway wif da red one" Sammy said as he handed his dad a blue hot wheels car.

"Thanks kiddo" John said as he took the car. "Dean has the red one though, this car is blue."

"Oh, otay" Sammy said as he shrugged his shoulders. "What codor is mine?"

"You've got a green one tiger" John said as he drove his car along the dirt road the boys had made with their sticks.

"Hey Joshua, you wanna race?" John heard his oldest son ask with Joshua immediately replying "You betcha squirt"

"Okay, on the count of three" Dean said as he looked at his dad with a wicked smirk. John knew exactly what Dean was up to as he said "One. Two" and Dean took off flying his car through the dirt as quickly as he could.

"Hey, no fair, you cheated" Joshua said as he pushed his car at a quick pace hurrying to catch up with Dean. John and Sammy watched and laughed as Dean was the first to cross the designated finish line. Sammy cheered for his big brother as Joshua shook his head in defeat.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

After an afternoon of fun playing with the boys, Joshua decided it was time to go to the lake and see if he could catch some fish for supper. As he grabbed his fishing pole, he felt a quick tug on his pant leg. He looked down to see Sammy looking up at him with solemn hazel eyes.

"Pwease don't go to da wake, dat fing might come back" Sammy implored trying to keep Joshua from going fishing.

"Hey tiger, I'm just going to go catch some fish for dinner. I promise I'll be okay." Joshua said before pulluing out his flare gun and said "This will help me to keep safe and your daddy will be right here if I need his help."

Sammy's bottom lip began to tremble as he realized that Joshua wasn't listening to his plea. "Pwease Unca Josh. Stay wif me."

Joshua swallowed the huge lump that formed in his throat when he heard Sammy call him uncle. He looked over towards John and Dean for help in dealing with the situation.

"Hey, I could use some help here" Joshua stated as he waited for somebody to say something.

Seeing the desperate look on Joshua's face, Dean walked over and kneeled in front of Sammy. "Hey little dude, everything's going to be okay. Joshua is just going to go to the lake for a little while and we can sit here and watch his back for him okay."

"But it might come back" Sammy said as small tears started falling down his cheeks.

"How about this, Josh can take some salt and put it around where he's going to fish, that way the thing can't get him" Dean suggested as another way of keeping Joshua safe. "Will that be okay?"

Sammy nodded his head and Joshua breathed a huge sigh of relief. He picked up his fishing pole along with a container of salt and walked down to the lake. He made sure Sammy was watching as he poured a line of protection around him.

After forty five minutes, Joshua had caught eight fish and figured that it would be more than enough for an evening meal. He picked up his fish and then scanned the surrounding area before heading back to the campsite.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

After John had cooked the fish and everybody had eaten a full serving, Joshua cleaned up the dishes while John got his boys ready for bed. Dean changed into his sleeping clothes while John changed Sammy's diaper and dressed him in some warm pajamas.

As John tucked his boys into the same sleeping bag, Sammy asked for a story with John gladly obliging the little boy. As he told his own version of Sammy and the Three Bears, John watched as Sammy's eyelids got heavier and heavier until the child finally drifted off to sleep with Dean following him shortly thereafter. John quickly kissed his boys goodnight and then left the tent to go talk with Joshua.

"The boys just nodded off" John informed Joshua as he walked over to sit by the fire. As he sat, he put a hand to his side as the stitches pulled on his skin. He was feeling much better, but the wound was still pretty tender and it hurt when he moved the wrong way.

"Let's give it an hour or so to make sure they're good and asleep before I take off to hunt the wendigo" Joshua said as he roasted a marshmallow over the open fire.

As they sat, Joshua told John where he thought the lair might be located and he drew a quick map in the dirt to point out its location. There was an old coal mine located not too far from where they were camped and Joshua thought it would be the perfect place for the creature to stay.

As Joshua told John his plans for taking down the creature, they were suddenly startled by the sound of yelling coming from the tent. "No Saaammmyyyy"

_Not long after he had drifted off to sleep, Dean began to dream. He dreamed that Uncle Bobby, Joshua, and his family had went on a picnic together. They were all enjoying a wonderful day in the middle of the park. He and Sammy were playing on the swings while their dad grilled hotdogs. Joshua and Uncle Bobby were playing a game of checkers and everybody was having fun. _

_All of the sudden, Dean watched as a skeletal looking creature came out of the woods. He yelled for help as the thing started moving towards him and Sammy. But when he looked up, his dad and the other acted like they didn't hear or see anything. His dad continued to grill while Josh and Bobby played their game._

_Dean watched in terror as the creature pulled his little brother from the swing as Sammy screamed in terror. Dean tried to beat the thing off but it just knocked him forcefully to the ground as it carried Sammy off into the woods while his little brother screamed "Deeeee"_

"_No Saaammmyyyy" Dean screamed in terror as he took off running trying to follow the thing that had kidnapped his little brother._

Joshua and John jumped up quickly and raced over towards the tent."What the hell" John said as he quickly entered the tent to find his oldest child drenched in sweat and moving restlessly about. By the time that John had got to his oldest to calm him down, Sammy had began to cry also.

Joshua quickly pulled Sammy into his arms and held the toddler as John woke Dean.

"Dean, what is it, what's wrong?" John asked as he pulled Dean tight to his chest and tousled his hair.

"That th-thing g-got S-Sammy" Dean cried as he clenched his fists in John's shirt.

"No, no it didn't, he's right here Ace" John said as Joshua sat down with Sammy beside him. "You had a nightmare son. Sammy's safe and sound" John crooned into Dean's ear as he rubbed Dean's back in comfort.

Dean looked up from his dad's shirt to see Joshua holding a softly crying Sammy. He took a few hitching breaths to calm himself as he reached out for his baby brother. Joshua quickly put Sammy into Dean's arms and then stood up to leave allowing the family some time to themselves.

**TBC **_**Were you surprised that Dean had the nightmare instead of Sammy?**_


	8. Chapter 8

**A Mountain Odyssey Ch. 8**

**Disclaimer: **Kripke and the CW own the Winchesters. I am just playing in their sandbox. I am not making a profit from this story.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

**Previously:** _Dean looked up from his dad's shirt to see Joshua holding a softly crying Sammy. He took a few hitching breaths to calm himself as he reached out for his baby brother. Joshua quickly put Sammy into Dean's arms and then stood up to leave allowing the family some time to themselves._

It took over an hour, but John calmed his boys enough that they finally drifted off to sleep. He rubbed his hands through his hair as he thought about the anguish that his boys were going through now because of his choice to bring them on the hunt. _"Damn it, why couldn't I have just turned this one down or put it off for a few days" _he thought as he felt a ton of guilt weighing in on his shoulders_. "Because of my own freaking stupidity, my boys are suffering now."_

John sat and watched his boys sleeping for a while. His boy looked so innocent in their sleep, like nothing bad had ever touched their lives. He wished that he could give them a normal life because they damn sure didn't deserve the one that they had now. A life of always traveling and not knowing where they would be spending the night. A life of always being exposed to danger because of the fucking demon that chose them as their next project.

"Jeez Mary, how am I supposed to raise them to be the angels that you wanted our boys to be?" He asked as he closed his eyes and pictured the beautiful blonde haired wife that he missed more and more with each passing day. "How can I be the dad that Sammy and Dean deserve? How do I protect them from all the forces of evil out there that are working to destroy our lives?"

"The answer to that is easy John, you do it one day at a time" Joshua said as he stood near the opened flap of the tent. "Sorry man, I didn't mean to intrude, but you're being too hard on yourself. It's obvious that you love those boys and you do everything you can to protect them. That's all they need, to know that their father cherishes them and will always protect them come hell or high water."

"Thanks man" John said as he smiled faintly. He wasn't sure if Joshua was right, but he would do his damnedest to make sure those boys knew they were the most important thing in his life. He would teach them how to fight the forces of evil to the best of his ability. He would make sure they forged a bond that would guide them through the worst of times.

"You're welcome. Do you think the boys are down for the night? Joshua inquired as he was getting antsy to get started on the hunt. He needed to put an end to the terror that the wendigo was inflicting on the Winchester family. In just a few short days, those boys had themselves so firmly situated within his heart that he would give his life it meant saving theirs.

"Yeah, I believe so." John replied as he watched Joshua pick up his duffle bag that held the equipment he would need for the hunt. "You sure you want to take on the wendigo on its own territory dude? It will have home court advantage."

"It's time that somebody stopped that creature's reign of terror and I plan to be the one to do it" Joshua stated with confidence as he hoisted his duffle bag over his shoulder. "It should only take me about an hour to find the coal mine and to destroy that creature as well as do a salt and burn. If I'm not back by morning, take the first chance you get and get the hell out of here with those boys of yours."

"I'm not leaving you behind" John stated forcefully. "Dean would never forgive me for it. So just make sure you come back so that I don't have to come looking for ya, you hear me?"

"I'll do my best" Joshua said as he walked off into the woods.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

Joshua traipsed through the woods quietly as he began his mission to kill the wendigo. The mine where he assumed the creature's lair was hidden was off to the north so he headed in that direction as he began to look for any signs left behind by the creature to warn off those daring to intrude upon its territory.

After walking for approximately twenty minutes, he found some markings approximately six feet high gouged into the bark of an oak tree. As he examined the markings with a small penlight, he could see the distinctive claw markings usually left behind by wendigoes.

After another twenty or so minutes of walking, he knew he was getting close to its lair when he found the same distinctive claw marks that were etched into most of the trees in the area. Knowing that the mine hadn't been used in years, he knew he would have to search through the underbrush to find the opening to the mine. Joshua turned off the penlight that he had been using to guide him through the woods so he wouldn't give off any advanced notice to his presence.

As quietly as he could, Joshua started moving the overgrown weeds and brambles trying to pinpoint the opening to the cave. As he searched, he stumbled upon the opening as his hand grazed a jagged peace of wood. He cut off a curse as he shook the pain out of his pierced palm. He was glad to see that the cut was shallow and barely bled. After he cleared the brush using a knife, Joshua thought about prying a few of the boards loose to enter the mine but chose not to because of the possibility that the boards would creak and give him away.

Joshua found an opening big enough for him to squeeze through and pushed his duffle bag in before climbing through himself. As soon as he entered the cave, he knew he had been right about it being the creature's lair from the awful stench that permeated the air. The putrid smell of rotting corpses wafted past him on the breeze and he had to fight down the natural urge to gag. He could feel the bile starting to burn in his stomach and prayed that he didn't vomit knowing that it could alert the creature to his presence.

Joshua started down the tunnel of the cave being careful where he placed his feet. He couldn't take the chance of stepping into any traps that could have been set along the way. He knew a leg or foot injury at this point could very well lead to his death and he was determined to survive at all costs. As he walked, Joshua soon came to a point where the tunnel diverged into tow different sub tunnels. Knowing that it could be the most important choice of his life, Joshua closely observed the opening to both tunnels before choosing the one to the right. This tunnel seemed to be the one more traversed since a well worn groove was paved into the dirt. It also had a stronger smell to it than the one of the left so Joshua assumed it was the wendigo's more favored retreat.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

John sat just outside the tent opening as he watched the night stars above. He had tried laying down to get some sleep, but it was no use. His mind was too focused on what could be happening with Joshua. The hunter had been gone for approximately forty five minutes and John couldn't help but be worried. He knew Joshua should be close to the lair by now or actually inside it and he worried about the hunter who had quickly become a close friend.

John thought about what it would do to his boys, to Dean if something happened to Joshua. Dean had really taken a liking to the man in the short time they had known him and John hated to think about how it would affect Dean if something happened to Joshua. Hell, it hadn't really been all that long since Dean had started talking again after losing his mom. He was still wary around most people and refused to talk to others unless it was to Bobby or Pastor Jim.

John peeked into the tent to gaze at his boys. Sammy had snuggled up so close to Dean that he was practically laying on top of his brother. Dean, as always, had an arm thrown protectively over his brother keeping him close where he could watch over him even in sleep. It amazed John to think how quickly Dean had slipped into the role of protector when it came to his baby brother.

As John watched his boys, he noticed as Sammy began to squirm. He quickly scooted over to his children and gently moved Dean's arm so he could pick up his youngest to keep Sammy from waking Dean up. "What's wrong tiger" he whispered as Sammy snuggled deep into his side, eyes closed. Wondering if he needed changing, John checked his diaper to find that Sammy was still clean and dry.

When Sammy let out a small whimper, John gently began to rock him as he whispered "Shh, go to sleep tiger, daddy's right here." John tried to focus his thoughts on good times worrying that maybe Sammy was picking up on the tension he felt as he worried about Joshua. He remembered a day when Mary had told him that babies were very sensitive and perceptive and could pick up on the negative feelings of others.

After a few minutes of soothing and rocking, John watched as Sammy settled into a peaceful sleep once again. He gently placed Sammy at Dean's side once again before laying down himself and wrapping an arm around both boys. He was too wired to fall asleep, but he could take comfort in being there with his boys.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

As Joshua crept down the tunnel, he thought he could hear the sounds of movement in the distance. His footsteps instantly became more stealthy as he made his way towards the wendigo. If he could just keep it from leaving the mine, he had no doubts that he could take it down. Feeling an adrenaline rush, he pulled his silver bladed knife from his jeans and held it in a protective stance in front of him as he advanced on.

The closer he got to the lair, the more odiferous the air became and Joshua soon had to stop and tie a bandana around his mouth and nose as the air became noxious to breathe. He could now see skulls and bones littering the floor up ahead, some of which had maggots feasting on the rotted meat left behind by the wendigo.

Joshua knew not only would he have to salt and burn the creature, but he would have to take care of the skeletal remains of the people too or chance them turning into vengeful spirits from the gruesome and painful deaths they had endured. He felt an involuntary shiver and then steeled himself once again as he approached the main area where the creature was living.

Joshua took a deep breath and held it as he took a quick glance into the lair. "Where are ya you freaking son of a bitch" he thought as he quickly scanned the area but saw no signs of the wendigo. He silently rounded the wooden beam and drew back just as he felt a burning pain lance across his left arm.

**TBC**


	9. Chapter 9

**A Mountain Odyssey Ch. 9**

**Disclaimer: **Kripke and the CW own the Winchesters. I am just playing in their sandbox. I am not making a profit from this story.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

**Previously:** _Joshua took a deep breath and held it as he took a quick glance into the lair. "Where are ya you freaking son of a bitch" he thought as he quickly scanned the area but saw no signs of the wendigo. He silently rounded the wooden beam and drew back just as he felt a burning pain lance across his left arm._

"Son of a bitch" Joshua gasped as he felt the blood flowing down his arm. He knew he was lucky to have caught that scant glimpse of the wendigo just before it struck, otherwise he probably would have lost his arm. Though his arm was bleeding badly, Joshua didn't think the wound was too bad since he still had control over muscle movement in it. He took a deep breath as he prepared himself to face the creature once again.

Joshua quickly flung himself through the opening on the far side to avoid the creatures grasp as he quickly entered the main part of the lair. He soon found himself face to face with the wendigo as he stared into its glowing eyes. He pulled the flare gun from the back of his jeans and took aim. Before he could shoot however, he found himself flying through the air with his back smacking against the mine wall with enough force to cause him to drop the flare gun and leave him breathless . He had no doubt that his back would be black and blue by morning.

He shook his head to clear the stars from his field of vision as he heard the wendigo approaching him. "You're going to die bitch" Joshua snarled as he raised himself up and stood on shaky legs. When the wendigo was almost close enough to touch, he flung his silver bladed knife deep into the creature's eye and watched as it howled in pain or anger, he wasn't sure which.

A grayish blue smoke poured from the eye socket as the wendigo reached up to remove the blade. It felt the pain of the silver burning its eye socket, but the wound wasn't lethal since the knife had not entered its heart.

"Damn it" Joshua growled as he watched the wendigo remove the blade. It was rumored that silver could kill it, but apparently that rumor was wrong. "Man, if only I had my frigging flame thrower your ass would be toast right now.

Joshua watched the creature warily as he searched the mine floor for the flare gun, with his eyes quickly spotting it close to the wendigo's clawed feet. Knowing that the flare gun was his only hope of coming out of the hunt alive, Joshua circled around the creature to draw it away from stepping on the gun.

"Come on you stupid ass" he taunted as he took a fighting stance. "Your dinner is standing right here before you so come and get it."

The wendigo searched for Joshua out of it's right eye after having been blinded in it's left by the silver knife. It caught a glimpse of the hunter off to the side and launched itself quickly towards the hunter with huge outstretched gangly arms. It's claws tore through Joshua's shirt as he lunged quickly out of its grasp landing near the flare gun.

As he reached out to grab the gun, he felt the wendigo grab onto his right leg as it pulled and twisted causing his knee to explode in pain. He fought off the blackness encroaching on his vision knowing that if he succumbed to unconsciousness that he would be the wendigo's next meal.

SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN

"No, no, no, no Joshua!" John and Dean were both instantly awakened at the sounds of Sammy's cries. John was startled as he watched his baby boy writhing in the sleeping bag and crying out for Joshua. _"What the hell?" _he thought as he looked up to see a wide-eyed Dean trying to figure out what in the world was happening.

Quickly realizing what was wrong, John reached out to pick his baby up and gently patted his face to wake him. "Come on kiddo, wake up" he said as he tried to calm Sammy down.

"Daddy, what's wrong with Sammy?" Dean asked with tear filled eyes.

"It's alright Ace, your brother's having a nightmare" John said as he once again tried to wake Sammy.

He patted Sammy's behind a little forcefully and was rewarded to see his baby open his eyes. "That's it baby, keep your eyes open for Daddy" John stated as he felt Sammy suddenly wrap his arms around his neck and his shirt became wet with Sammy's tears.

"What's wrong tiger?" he asked hoping to get Sammy to tell him what he had dreamed about.

"Da 'wigo g-gots Joshua" Sammy stuttered out through hitching breaths. "It hurt Joshua Daddy, dere's bwood on him." With those words, Sammy began to tremble in his Daddy's arms as he sobbed even harder.

"It's okay Sammy, it was just a nightmare" John said as he rocked his youngest child in his arms. John hoped the words he was saying were true and that Joshua hadn't been hurt or killed by the wendigo.

John was starting to get worried. After five minutes of trying to calm Sammy, his baby boy was still sobbing his heart out. Not knowing what else to do, John said "Dean, there's a bottle deep in the bottom of my duffle bag. Get it out and fill it with juice. I've got to get Sammy calmed down some how." John didn't like pulling the bottle out since Sammy hadn't had one in months, but he needed to comfort his child somehow.

Dean quickly found the bottle and filled it with apple juice and walked over to sit beside his dad. John pulled Sammy's arms from around his neck and lay him in the crook of his arm. Dean reached over and plopped the bottle in Sammy's mouth just as he opened it in a hiccupping breath.

"Shhh, it's okay Sammy" Dean said as Sammy sobbed while trying to suck on the bottle a few times. Dean smiled as Sammy turned wet eyes to focus on him. He continued to say soothing words to his little brother until Sammy stared calming down.

"That's it, you're doing good little dude" Dean said as he watched Sammy's tears finally stopping. He wiped the tear tracks from Sammy's face as his little brother sucked on his bottle.

"You're the one that did good Ace" John said as he tousled Dean's hair with his free arm knowing that Dean had been a huge help in calming Sammy down sooner than he probably could have by himself. John pulled Dean even closer to his side as he let his thoughts wonder to what could be going on with Joshua at the moment.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

Joshua reached out and grabbed the flare gun with his finger tips as he felt the wendigo begin to pull him through the slime covered floor. He reached his injured arm up to flip the safety off as he attempted to roll over so he could get a good shot. He had barely moved as more pain lanced through his leg. He aimed as best he could and fired the flare which caught the wendigo in the side.

The wendigo lost its grip on Joshua's leg as it felt the fire burning within its rib area. It roared in agony as it used its claw like hands to pull the burning flare from its body before tossing it at the injured hunter. The wendigo tried to escape from the area knowing it was seriously injured. It needed to leave so it could fight another day.

Joshua batted the flare away with his good arm before it could connect with his clothing and set it on fire. He pulled himself to a sitting position as he watched the wendigo turn to make its escape. "Oh no you don't" he said as he quickly loaded the flare gun once again and aimed towards the creature's back. Locating the approximate position of the heart, Joshua fired the gun and watched as the flare embedded deep into the creature's emaciated back.

An unearthly howling rumbled loudly through the cave as the Wendigo tried in agony to dislodge the flare. Joshua grimaced and covered his ears to keep his eardrums from bursting with the shrill sound the wendigo was emitting. Within minutes, he saw the creature become fully engulfed and exploded into nothingness but ashes. "Thank God" he sighed as sagged to the floor from the pain encompassing his body.

Joshua lay on the floor for approximately fifteen minutes before pulling himself to his feet and hobbling over to the wendigo's ashes deciding to salt and burn them again just to be sure the creature wouldn't come back. Afterwards, he limped back to the tunnel that housed the remains of the people that had been killed. He piled the bones together and did another salt and burn, watching until the flames died down.

Finally able to leave the mine, Joshua saw the sun dawning on the horizon. _"What a beautiful sight" _he thought as he searched for something to use as a crutch. There was no way he would be able to walk on that leg all they way back to the camp.

Finding a suitable branch, he reached down to pick it up and lost his balance, falling to the ground. "Damn it" he hissed as pain shot through his knee once again. He felt the sweat beading on his forehead as he took deep gasping breaths to calm himself. After a couple of minutes, he pushed himself to a standing position as he leaned his weight onto the tree limb crutch.

"_Okay Joshua, one foot in front of the other" _he encouraged himself as he started hobbling back towards the area where John and the boys were staying.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

After Sammy had finished his bottle and finally drifted back off to sleep, John placed him beside an already sleeping Dean and watched as Dean naturally curled around Sammy in his sleep. He hoped that the boys would be able to sleep for another few hours hopefully giving Joshua the time to get back. He was afraid what it would do to Sammy's psyche if he woke up to find Joshua gone after the nightmare he had had.

John walked out of the tent a few hours later and saw that the sun had dawned a little while ago. He scanned the surrounding area and was disappointed when he didn't see any signs of Joshua. He had hoped the hunter would be back by now since his boys would most likely be waking soon.

"_Where are you Joshua?" _he thought as he tried to occupy himself with gathering some kindling to rebuild a fire. He really could use a cup of coffee after the long night he just had.

John soon had a fire going and was sipping on his first cup of coffee when he heard a sound in the distance. He looked up to see a staggering Joshua falling to the ground.

"Holy Shit" he gasped as he ran out to meet the fallen hunter. He bent down to assess the fallen hunter and immediately saw the dazed look in Joshua's eyes. "You're gonna be okay man" he said as he helped the injured hunter to his feet.

"I-I got the w-wendigo" Joshua panted out in pain as John helped him to a standing position. "The s-son of a b-bitch is dead, it w-won't be s-scaring the b-boys anymore"

"Glad to hear that" John said as he pulled Joshua's uninjured arms around his neck, while he wrapped a supporting arm around the injured hunter's waist. "Let's get you back to camp."

**TBC**


	10. Chapter 10

**A Mountain Odyssey Ch. 10**

**Disclaimer: **Kripke and the CW own the Winchesters. I am just playing in their sandbox. I am not making a profit from this story.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

**Previously:**_"I-I got the w-wendigo" Joshua panted out in pain as John helped him to a standing position. "The s-son of a b-bitch is dead, it w-won't be s-scaring the b-boys anymore."_

"Glad to hear that" John said as he pulled Joshua's uninjured arms around his neck, while he wrapped a supporting arm around the injured hunter's waist. "Let's get you back to camp."

As John got Joshua back to the camp, he gently lowered the injured hunter down onto the log that they had been using as a chair over the past few days. He knew the first thing he needed to do was assess Joshua's injuries so he could take care of the most critical wounds first. He helped his injured friend remove his jacket and shirt.

"Damn" John swore in sympathy as he saw the myriad of bruises that encompassed most of Joshua's back. He could only imagine how much pain Joshua was in. "Your back looks like you went over Niagara falls a few times over man, what the hell happened to you?"

"That son of a bitch threw me against a wall" Joshua hissed as John prodded for swelling or broken bones."

"You'll have to get checked out for internal bleeding from the looks of these bruises when we make it back to civilization" John stated oblivious to the fact of how much Joshua hated hospitals.

"Hell no, I ain't going to no freaking hospital. I'll be just fine" Joshua retorted as he arched his back when he was hit by a painful spasm.

"Whatever you say" John said as he moved on to check the claw wound in Joshua's arm that was still bleeding. "I'm going to have to clean this out" John stated as he reached over to get the first aid kit from Joshua's duffle bag that lay nearby. He opened the kit and pulled out a bottle of peroxide and some holy water. He poured a liberal amount of holy water onto Joshua's arm and winced in sympathy when he saw the steam rising from the wound.

"Shit" Joshua swore through clenched teeth as John poured more holy water over the area. He could tolerate a lot of pain since he used to be a bad assed marine, but damned if that holy water didn't burn like a bitch.

After he had thoroughly washed out the wound, John poured peroxide over Joshua's arm and watched as it bubbled up which indicated that it was fighting the germs that had invaded the claw marks.

John was just about to wrap the wound when he heard the high pitched screams of his youngest son.

Joshua quickly clamped his hand over his injured arm as he nodded towards the sound for John to go check on Sammy,

Reaching his son in just seconds, John quickly picked Sammy up and held him close. "What is it, what's wrong tiger?" He asked as he ran his hand through Sammy's curly brown locks. He could hear the hitch in Sammy's breath as his child started sobbing in his arms. When he glanced over to see Sammy's face, he saw his child staring at Joshua and the blood on his arm.

"Damn it John, how could you be so freaking stupid after that nightmare last night" he muttered to himself just as he saw Dean scampering out of the tent after hearing Sammy's wails.

"Daddy, what's wrong with Sammy?" Dean asked as he quickly run over to check on his baby brother.

"I think Sammy's a little scared right now Dean" John said as he turned his body to shield Sammy from seeing Joshua.

"But why?" Dean asked needing to know what was scaring Sammy so he could try to make it better.

John nodded his head to the right as he bounced Sammy in his arms trying to comfort his baby.

Dean looked to where his dad nodded to see Joshua sitting on the tree log. He immediately saw the blood on Joshua's arm and the shirt laying next to him and knew exactly what was wrong. Sammy had to have seen the blood and related it to the nightmare that he had had last night.

"Oh" Dean whispered, feeling sad for his little brother at having to see Joshua hurt like he was.

"Dean, I need you to take Sammy back to the tent for me and watch out for him while I take care of Joshua. Can you do that for me Sport?" John asked knowing very well what his son's answer would be.

"Sure dad, you can count on me" Dean said as he reached out to take Sammy in his arms.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

John stood and watched as Dean carried Sammy back into the tent. He could tell that Sammy was still crying into Dean's shoulder even though he couldn't see his baby's face. As soon as the boys were out of sight, John walked back over to focus on taking care of Joshua once again.

As he picked up the gauze to wrap Joshua's arm, he heard the injured hunter ask "How's the little one doing?"

"He'll be okay, he had a nightmare last night that the wendigo had gotten you. He woke up screaming and crying that you were hurt and had blood on you. It just hit him hard waking up to find you looking the way he had seen you in his dream I guess" John said as finished wrapping the wound and taping it off.

"Damn, I wish I could have kept him from seeing me like this" Joshua said as he grimaced at how tight the bandage felt on his arm.

"Okay, I gotta take a look at your leg man, you either got to drop the jeans or I'm going to have to cut your pant leg with scissors John said as he waited to see what Joshua would choose to do.

"Hey, we haven't even been out on a first date yet and you're already trying to get me out of my pants" Joshua smirked as he watched the pink tinge emerge on John's cheeks.

"Hah hah" John said as pulled out the scissors to cut the pant leg on Joshua's right leg. After cutting the material, John started prodding around the knee area trying to determine the extent of the injury.

"Shit dude, be careful" Joshua grunted as John touched his knee in a particularly painful spot.

"Well I don't think it's dislocated, but I would say you've got one hell of a sprain. I wouldn't be surprised if you tore the ligament in your knee" John said as he wrapped Joshua.s knee with an ace bandage.

After John finished wrapping the knee, he said "Okay, lets get you inside the tent and get that leg elevated to help with the swelling" John helped Joshua to a standing position and then provided support as he helped Joshua walk over to their tent.

Upon walking inside, the hunters found a calm Sammy sitting in Dean's lap as Dean was telling his baby brother a story.

"_And you know what happened to that big bad wolf Sammy?" _

_Sammy shook his head no as he eagerly sucked on his thumb. _

"_He climbed right up on top of the brick house where Dean Pig, Sammy pig, and John pig lived and he slid down that chimney right into the pot of soup that John pig had cooking on the fire."_

_Sammy's eyes got huge as he snuggled closer into Dean. "Den what 'appened Dean?" he asked eagerly wanting to hear the rest of the story._

"_Well, that wolf landed in the boiling water and shot straight back up that chimney with his tail on fire where Farmer Joshua was waiting on him and blasted his ass with the salt gun and killed 'em" _

"_Yay" Sammy said as he clapped his little hands knowing the family of pigs was safe once again._

By the time that Dean had finished his story, John had helped Joshua to lay down on his sleeping bag and had propped his leg in the air to help with the swelling.

Just realizing that his daddy was in the tent, Sammy looked over to see him lifting Joshua's leg up and putting it on his duffle bag. He let out a small gasp as he saw the bandage on Joshua's arm.

"It's okay tiger" Joshua said immediately upon hearing Sammy's gasp. "Your daddy took care of my boo-boo's so you don't have to be afraid now. Joshua watched as Sammy shyly slid in behind Dean. He couldn't blame Sammy for still being scared after everything that had happened. He would just have to work on becoming the toddlers friend once again, but that would have to wait until he was feeling up to it. For now, he just wanted to sleep.

Seeing that the injured hunter had fallen asleep, John picked up Sammy and then ushered Dean out of the tent so that Joshua could sleep without interruption. He knew how noisy the boys could sometimes get in their playfulness and didn't want them disturbing Joshua accidentally.

"Hey boys, I forgot to tell you that Joshua killed the wendigo. It can't hurt us anymore, so what do you say we go down to the lake and do some fishing" John said as he playfully flew Sammy through the air like he was an airplane.

"Is it really gone daddy, it ain't gonna come back" Dean asked as he stared at his father with piercing green eyes.

"It's really gone son" John said as he tousled Dean's hair before grabbing some poles and walking down to the lake with Sammy on his hip and Dean following him.

**TBC **_**The next chapter will be the last.**_


	11. Chapter 11

**A Mountain Odyssey Ch. 11**

**Disclaimer: **Kripke and the CW own the Winchesters. I am just playing in their sandbox. I am not making a profit from this story.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

**Previously: **_"Hey boys, I forgot to tell you that Joshua killed the wendigo. It can't hurt us anymore, so what do you say we go down to the lake and do some fishing" _

John found what he thought would be the perfect spot for fishing. There was a fallen log that he and Dean could rest their poles and it would keep Sammy from getting too close to the water. "This is the perfect spot for catching fish" John said as he watched a broad smile crossing Dean's face. I'll get the fishing poles ready. Sammy, I want you to stay close to your brother so you don't accidentally fall into the water."

"Otay Daddy" Sammy said as John gently put him down. Sammy found a spot to play in the dirt where Dean could easily watch over him while John put some lures on his and Dean's fishing poles and said "Watch me Dean so you'll know how to cast your pole out into the water."

Dean watched his daddy closely and noticed how his dad had a firm grip around the base of the pole and how he pushed that button in to make the line go out really far. He knew he wouldn't be able to make his go as far as his daddy's but he hoped he could make his daddy proud when it was his turn.

"Okay Ace, let's see you cast yours out" John said as he watched Dean prepare to cast his line. Before releasing though, Dean looked to where Sammy sat playing in the dirt to make sure that he wouldn't accidentally hit his little brother. Seeing that Sammy was a safe distance away, Dean followed the moves that his father had made and was surprised to see his line go out almost as far as his dad's.

"I did it Daddy" he enunciated as he held tightly to his pole.

"You sure did Dean, you almost did it better than me" John bragged proudly as he reached out to tousle Dean's hair.

John showed Dean how to rest his fishing pole on a spot on the log where he would be able to watch it with ease. John then added a bobber to their lines and explained to Dean how it would raise up if a fish took the lure. He and Dean sat back to watch their poles while John also kept a close eye on Sammy. John let himself relax totally knowing that the wendigo was no longer a threat. He wanted to enjoy this beautiful day with his boys because there was no telling when they would have another one.

John was drawn out of his serene moment when he heard a gasp coming from his oldest son. He looked over at Dean who was focused on his pole with wide eyes. "Uh oh, I think I got one!" Dean said excitedly as he watched his bobber raise up to touch his pole. He then reached out to grasp the handle as John helped him to jerk the pole up.

"Okay Dean, you've got to reel him in now son" John encouraged as he helped Dean to reel in the fish. He could feel the excitement radiating off Dean as he drew the fish nearer. "Okay kiddo, keep reeling it in while I use the net to scoop it up" John said as he got close to the water. As Dean pulled his fish in to the lakes edge, John dipped the net into the water and scooped up a beautiful eight inch rainbow trout.

"Wow, you caught a whopper of a fish" John said as he beamed in pride at his youngest son. He then looked over to see Sammy hopping up and down as he waited to see the fish.

"Come here tiger" John said to encourage Sammy to move closer. "Daddy will make sure you don't fall in the water."

Sammy raced over to his dad and his mouth dropped open in awe as he looked at the amazing fish that his brother had caught. "You did it Deanie" Sammy hollered as he clapped his hands in joy. "You caught Sammy da big fishy."

John laughed at hearing Sammy's words. "Sorry tiger, but this fish is going to be our dinner" John said he removed the fish from Dean's hook. As he removed the fish though, he suddenly heard the soft sounds of Sammy sobbing.

Wondering what could have happened so quickly to upset his youngest, John said "What's wrong kiddo?"

"I don't wants you too cook my fish" Sammy pouted as huge tears fell down his face."

John sat stunned not knowing what to say to comfort his youngest. He hadn't even considered the possibility that Sammy would be upset about cooking the fish for dinner. As he struggled to figure out what to say, he suddenly heard Dean's voice comforting his baby brother.

"It's okay Sammy, Daddy won't cook your fish. We'll put him back into the water so he can go and play with his friends okay."

"Otay Deanie" Sam quickly agreed as he waited for his Daddy to toss the fish back into the water.

"Are you sure Dean?" John asked wanting to make sure that his oldest child wasn't upset at the prospect having to throw his first fish back.

"I don't mind Daddy, as long as it makes Sammy happy then I'm happy too" Dean said with a huge smile on his face.

John tossed the fish back into the water with Sammy and Dean standing beside him. "Bye fishy" Sammy hollered out as he waved to the fish quickly swimming away. Just about that time, John heard Joshua's voice calling out to him for help.

"Hey Winchester, give me a hand here" Joshua called as he tried to limp his way down to the lake carrying his own pole. He wasn't about to miss out on the fishing if he could help it.

"Dean, hold onto Sammy while I help Joshua" John said as he started walking towards the injured hunter while Dean sat beside Sammy and played in the dirt with him by using a stick to draw pictures.

"What the hell are you doing up and moving?" John asked as he made it to Joshua's side. "You should be laying down and resting with the injuries you suffered."

"I'm tired of laying down. Besides, when I saw you guys fishing. I thought it would be the perfect opportunity for me to try and make friends with Sammy again" Joshua retorted with a grimace on his face. He still felt like hell, but the pain would all be worth it if he could get Sammy to liking him again and not be afraid of him.

As soon as John helped Joshua to sit down and prop his leg, Joshua decided to pull one of Dean's con jobs on the youngest Winchester.

"Man, I sure wish I had somebody to help me fish. I don't think I can do it myself with the way my arm is hurting" Joshua said as he reached up to rub his injured arm." He watched out of the corner of his eye as Sammy's eyes lit up, but then the little tyke put his thumb in his mouth unsure of what to do.

"Oh well, guess I can't fish since nobody wants to help" Joshua said in a defeated voice with a frown upon his face. He glanced once again out of the side of his eye to see both John and Dean watching the littlest Winchester intently to see what he would do.

Sammy took a few steps forward and then stopped to look at his big brother as if in permission.

"Go ahead Sammy, it'll be fun" Dean encouraged as he waited for Sammy to make another move.

Everyone watched with bated breath until a toothy grin crossed Sammy's face and he said "I help you Unca Josh."

Joshua let out a breath he hadn't even realized he had been holding at seeing the eagerness on the toddler's face. "Thanks tiger" Joshua said as he patted his uninjured leg for Sammy to sit down. He had Sammy help him cast his pole out in to the water and saw John and Dean do the same.

John placed a bobber onto Joshua's line also so that his hunter friend wouldn't have to move anymore than was necessary.

"Thanks man" Joshua said grateful for the gesture. He then patted Sammy on the head and asked "Okay tiger, think we're gonna catch one?"

"Uh huh" Sammy said as he jerked the pole up like he had seen his daddy do earlier. "We got's one Unca Josh" Sammy said as he tried to move the winding thing with his chubby little hands.

Joshua had to laugh at Sammy's eagerness and helped him to reel in the line knowing that nothing was on the hook at the end. As the reeled in the line to shore, Joshua said 'Aw, that sneaky fish, he jumped of the line before we could get him."

All three Winchester's laughed at the playful pout they saw on Joshua's face after he had made the remark. "That otay, we det him next time" Sammy giggled as he and Joshua cast the line into the water once again.

Joshua and Sammy spent the brunt of their time casting their pole while John and Dean caught a mess of fish. Joshua couldn't remember the last time he had had so much fun, and here he was fishing with a toddler no less.

As lunch time neared, John called an end to the fishing so they could make their way back over towards the tent to cook the fish for lunch. Afterwards, they would pack up their gear and make their way out of the woods and back towards civilization. Joshua found himself wishing that this day could go on because he was truly going to miss this family that had become so close to his heart.

**THE END **_**I hope you enjoyed the ending and the way that Joshua made friends with Sammy once again. Who knows, maybe Joshua will meet up with the Winchesters once again.**_


End file.
